Darlings and Deltas in Flight
by Jaybird9x
Summary: Hayate and Freyja, accompanied by Keith, enter the Star Sanctum to save the Star Singer. But instead of Hayate and Freyja escaping, the blast wave of the Sanctum being destroyed, mixed with the intense waves left behind by the Star Singer sends them through a dimensional wormhole. Posted as regular cuz Xover doesn't have characters. On hiatus while I work on Flames of Freedom.
1. Chapter 1

Keith was glad that he had told the other two pilots and the little younger Windermerean to leave, for it gave him this last bit of time with Roid.

"Roid, why would you do this?" The Wing Leader helplessly questioned his old friend, Keith's blade being buried to the hilt in Roid's chest. Roid had betrayed His Majesty and Windermere itself, seeking immortality. While it was for a noble cause, as their lives typically only lasted thirty years, it was still morally _wrong_.

"Eternity…" Roid replies, his voice raspy and unstable. His eyes widened minutely as his body begins to die, "eternity would have freed the wind of Windermere...from the shackles of its fleeting existence, and bring eternal peace to our skies."

Keith's eyes hardened, his rune reaching out and lightly touching Roid's. He looked down at their runes as his eyes narrowed, "In that moment, I felt the burning light of life." Moving his gaze back up, he stared into his oldest friend's eyes.

"You were the one who showed me that, Roid." Roid's eyes widened and began to glisten.

"I did?" He whispered, Keith's memory of two small boys flying through the air transferred through their runes. The two finally understood the feelings that the other had, finding peace in their coming deaths and embracing it with open arms.

The Star Sanctum began to collapse around them, the structure becoming increasing unstable as the magic of the wind began to destabilize. The last thing the two Windermereans saw were the glistening eyes of the other as the world exploded around them. The universe was safe from the Star Singer's Wind as the Sanctum imploded, sending out a massive blast wave that could be felt light years away.

Unfortunately, Hayate, Freyja, and Mirage had finally run out of luck.

The shrill alarms blared in the two VF's as the system's electronics were obliterated from the amount of electrical disturbance the explosion produced.

"HAYATE!" He heard Freyja scream, her voice filled with terror and sadness as she realized that they wouldn't be able to keep their promise of living out the future together.

He hugged her fiercely, refusing to let go of her even at death's gate.

Fortunately, fate had other plans in store for the two pilots and the most recent member of Walküre. Their VF units were rattling from the pressure of an intense gravitational pull.

"I-I can't break free!" He heard Mirage scream, frantically trying to restart the units thrusters. He closed his eyes in defeat, holding his new girlfriend tighter, and prepared himself for Death's embrace.

Black holes had always been a difficult theory for humanity to expand upon. In general, the only agreed upon aspects of blacks holes are how the grow and how they act. After a black hole has formed, it can continue to grow by absorbing mass from its surroundings. By absorbing other stars and merging with other black holes, supermassive black holes of millions of solar masses may form in their place. It is also normally agreed upon that the intensity of the gravitational pull is strong enough to suck in all light, leaving its appearance pitch black.

Black holes, wormholes, and white holes have always interested me, ever since I unknowingly theorized the same idea that a theory from 1987 proposed when I was in sixth grade. I had always wondered about the Big Bang and how it had _happened_. Sure we know it was a massive explosion of energy and mass, but _where _did that energy and mass come from? I vaguely recall my father, who is an aerospace engineer major, talking to me about how time is slower in a black hole and that the space in it is warped, which led me to believe there is always _something_ on the other side. I had theorized exactly what the report from three decades ago had: a black hole could be what produced the Big Bang.

The Space-Time Continuum is a theory that is based off of the speed of light being the distance light travels divided by the time it takes to travel this path, and (according to Einstein's second principle) all observers must agree on this speed. If the speed of light is surpasses by an object, the Space-Time Continuum could branch off into a different worldline. Watch Steins;Gate if you want an in-depth look at world lines.

But what if the change of a worldline was not only due to an object surpassing the speed of light, but it passing it while in a black hole? A place where time and space are thought to be warped completely.

It is upon this combination of theories that the plot of this story moves forward.

It is with this theory that the driving force that is causing Hayate, Mirage, and Freyja to be pulled into the center of a black hole, will send them into a worldline that _already_ existed.

**The first time Hiro flies with Zero Two.**

"You are now…my Darling!" The blood stained Pinkette declared to him as she pulled him into a searing kiss. The world around him went white as his mind and soul connected with hers.

**(You know I gotta do it.)**

Her horns glow as she feels him _entering _her body, _penetrating_ so _deep_ inside of her. She groans as she feels him _all the way inside her shaking form. _Her vision explodes with stars and her grin widens as she feels his _essence _all over her body_. _She shivers with excitement as he _spears_ her whole being, leaving her with the sensation of _fullness._

"Oh it feels so _good_, Darling." She purrs_._

"Oh god Zero Two, I can feel you _squeezing_ me_." _He whispers in ecstasy.

**(Ok I'm done, but I'm not sorry for what I've done.)**

We all know how the fight goes: Hiro falls unconscious, the FranXX unit turns into the "Iron Maiden" form, and the two pilots completely obliterated the attacking Klaxosaur.

After the core of the beast is speared and destroyed by the lance that the FranXX unit—Strelizia—fought with, a loud explosion was heard. The "sky" shimmers and warps as space and time is manipulated and soon a gaping black hole replaces the anomaly.

Everyone stares in shock and awe, Hachi was about to call for the Plantation to use the entirety of its defensive capabilities, but his command died on the tip of his tongue as two pairs of planes fell from the sky.

If he hadn't been conditioned to not feel emotions, he would have gasped at the appearance of a vehicle that hadn't existed in over a _century_. The objects falling from the sky were very similar to the F-15 Eagles that often flew over military bases so long ago. Yet instead of bearing a country's color or flag, the two birds were brilliantly colored.

From what Hachi could see with the cameras around the Plantation's outer dome, one of them was white with a dazzling blue frame while the other was a shiny gray with a vibrant purple outline. The white and blue plane had a picture of a Grim Reaper on it with a massive 04 painted on the side of the wing.

Doctor Werner hummed curiously, his mechanical voice causing the kids in the room to cringe slightly. He tapped his cane on the floor once, gaining the attention of Nana and Hachi.

"Send Zero Two to the crash site to _observe and investigate. _She is _not_ to engage unless the objects engage first." He commands, already walking towards the exit.

Relaying the doctor's command to Zero Two, Nana mentally groans as the infuriating Partner Killer makes it clear that she was going to toe the line of disobedience once again.

Waking up in a stamen cockpit was the last thing Hiro had expected to happen. His head throbbed as the sensations he felt during the flight began again, Zero Two having blasted towards the crash site.

"Darling~" She purrs, basking in the connection between the two of them. They soon found themselves at the crash site and were greeted with a confusing sight. The vehicles that had first appeared as planes now looked, albeit vaguely, like the training bots Hiro often used.

The two pilots disconnected from each other and exited Strelizia. The cockpits of the mechs open up, setting them on edge, until a small head pokes out.

It was a little girl. An odd looking one too. She had bright two-toned hair. The peach hair had the strangest streaks of yellow in it, evenly splitting the color of her hair into thirds. Yellow, Peach, Yellow. There was also a glowing purple object floating above her head, connected to somewhere in her hair. Her eyes gazed around and soon landed on Zero Two and Hiro. She squeaked and ducked back into the cockpit.

Hiro cocked his head in confusion. Why had she gone back inside?

Zero Two knew exactly why the girl had hidden, for the face the girl displayed was the same as her previous stamens showed towards her.

Fear.

She sighed mentally, more tired and annoyed at the reaction than insecure.

Soon, the child's head ever so slowly peeks out from the lip of the cockpit. She eeped when she realized they hadn't moved at all and hid once again.

"That's it. Get your weird ass out here, girl." Zero Two declared, crossing her arms and glaring at the cockpit.

"Make me, weirdo!" The girl yelled back, the defiance in her tone causing the hybrid to smirk.

_This girl is interesting. At least someone has some spark in them._

She grabbed Hiro's hand and led him back to their FranXX, strapped in, connected, and proceeded to tear open the cockpits of the two mechs. The girl gasped in shock at the menacing humanoid form that Strelizia had and backed up against the walls of the cockpits, holding a limp figure behind her.

Strelizia's face flickered off and opened up, Zero Two jumping out and landing in the little girls cockpit. She notices the boy in her arms and smirks. He had blue hair and decent looks and clearly meant a lot to the girl. The uniform the boy was wearing made it clear that he was the pilot. Dismissing the unconscious boy from her mind, as there were no injuries on him, she looks to the other cockpit a few yards away.

She cocks her head when she sees a female figure beginning to stir. The lady had long maroon hair, slightly pointed ears, and a battle hardened face. She was also wearing a pilot's uniform, which made her wonder why she didn't have a partner with her like the boy did.

"Who are you?" The girl demands, holding the male tighter to her chest. Zero Two returns her gaze to the small child, before leaning down. Her face is mere inches from the girl's, causing the girl to blush at the closeness.

"Interesting. I am Zero Two. You smell interesting." She replies, smirking at the disturbed face of the girl.

"N-nice to meet you, I guess. I'm Freyja Wion. W-Where the heck are we?" She stammers. Zero Two cocks her head and shifts her gaze to the man in Freyja's arms.

"Who and what is he to you?"

"H-His name is Hayate...a-and uh he's my b-boyfriend." She stutters, her face turning tomato red and her tentacle-like object brightening.

"He is a pilot, is he not? Are you his Pistil?" The hybrid asks, her eyes narrowing at the object in the girls hair.

"He is a pilot but what is a Pistil?" Freyja asks, her tentacle still glowing. She saw movement out of the corner of her eyes and looked to see a boy who looked about her age.

"W-who is he?!" She stammers, holding Hayate even closer to her. The boy freezes and rubs the back of his head sheepishly.

"I'm Hiro. Nice to meet you." He replies, putting his hands in his pockets and rocking back and forth on his feet.

"He is my _Darling~_" Zero Two corrects him, smiling slightly.

"So he is your boyfriend?" Freyja asks hesitantly, confused at the relationship between the two. Zero Two seemed to be a possessive creature, claiming Hiro as hers, while Hiro seemed to have a more reserved nature.

"What is a boyfriend?" Zero Two asks, confused at the new term. Freyja looks startled at the parasite's lack of knowledge of a common term before defining it for her. Zero Two hums before turning her head to the other mecha.

"Who is that in the other FranXX?" She inquires, narrowing her eyes at the mech's design. Freyja, unfamiliar with the term, decides to just let it slide for now. Maybe the term for mech's wasn't universal.

"Her name is Mirage. She's Delta Flight's second in command." She replies, smiling slightly at the pilot who helped her confess to Hayate.

"Well. You don't look too injured, you have no identification other than your names, and you came from an unknown area. We'll have to bring you back to the plantation for interrogation." Zero Two informs her casually, turning around and getting back in her FranXX.

Soon, the two pilots and their wind singer are being brought away from their crash site, being held in the hand of a humanoid robot that looked much more intimidating than their own.


	2. Chapter 2

Groaning in agony at the massive headache he was feeling, Hayate's eyes flutter open to meet a sterile, white ceiling.

"I don't know...this ceiling…" he mumbled, his body extremely sore, as he closes his eyes against the bright lights of the infirmary.

"I sure hope you wouldn't know it, because that would mean you've been here before." A male voice replies from beside his bed, causing his eyes to snap open wide. He tried to sit up but was held back by a hand on his chest.

"Stay calm child, you are still very injured." The voice replies evenly, his tone sounding emotionless and bored. The man beside him picks up a clipboard from the bedside table. "You are lucky to be alive. Three broken ribs, a collapsed lung, severe internal bleeding, and your tibia was fractured. You've been out cold for almost five days now."

"Where am I?" Hayate asks, turning his head slightly which caused him to hiss at the pain. "Who are you?"

"I am Code 008, also known as Hachi. I am the Defense Commander for APE. As for where you are, you are currently in the infirmary of Plantation 13." Hachi's replies monotonously, those brown eyes staring straight into Hayate's soul.

_Defense Commander? So like Captain Johnson? Or would he be more like Lady M's direct inferior?_

Hachi continued to stare at Hayate in complete silence, leaving the boy unnerved as hell. He coughed nervously, looking around the room and spotting both Mirage and Freyja laying in matching medical beds.

"Are they okay, Hachi?" Hayate replies hesitantly. Hachi's eyes don't leave him as he reads out the two girls' injuries.

Freyja had gotten lucky, her injuries consisting of only a fractured ankle and some cuts and bruises. She would have died if not for him taking the brunt of the impacts. She was expected to fully recover in just a few hours.

Mirage wasn't so lucky. Four broken ribs, a broken ankle, a fractured shoulder blade, multiple muscle tears, a concussion, and was almost bleeding out upon arrival to the med bay.

"I-is Mirage going to live?!" He asked frantically, trying and failing to sit up.

"She is expected to recover, but it will take a long time. Please note that if she had arrived even five minutes later, she would be dead right now. Her estimated recovery time is three weeks for her bones and muscles, and a week and a half for the concussion. She will be under heavier surveillance and be kept in a coma for her safety." Hachi replies, his dull tone starting to irritate Hayate.

"You could act a little less dull and cruel, you know? Those are my friends!" He complains, his annoyance clear in his tone. Hachi turns away, standing up and heading to the door.

"Us parasites are conditioned to not feel emotions, sexual desires, or seek out relationships. Our sole reason for existing is to fight against the klaxosaurs. Someone else will come by soon, try not to aggravate her or she will probably kill you."

With those parting words, Hachi leaves the room, and the door slid shut behind him. Hayate lays back down, breathing deeply at the mind boggling information he was just given.

Hayate only had to wait a few minutes in silence, only being broken by the beeping of the electrocardiograms signaling the heartbeats of the three patients, before the door slid open once more.

It was a male and a female. The latter smirking while the former smiled sheepishly.

The male had darkish hair, light blue eyes, and was dressed like a student. He was a bit shorter than Hayate, but his eyes shone with curiosity like he had never seen before.

The female was terrifying. Crimson red horns poked out from her forehead and her smirk showed off her fangs. Her eyes were a bright green, outlined by what looked to be red eyeshadow. Her pink hair somehow matched the horns quite well, and she was quite attractive.

"So you are awake?" She stated more than asked, striding over to Freyja's bed, and leaning over her.

"What are you doing?" Hayate asks frantically, trying and failing to get up. The male had placed his hand on Hayate's shoulder, offering a comforting smile to the injured boy.

"She won't hurt her. She is most likely just figuring out where Freyja stands in her structured life." He calmly states, watching Zero Two sniff the small girl, and lick her cheek once. She straightens after a second and puts a finger to her chin.

"Hmmm. What an interesting taste...it bites like yours darling, but it also has a soothing breeze within it." She hums in contentment, before turning around and approaching his bedside. He stiffens as she leans down to do the same process to him.

"Get away from me. Don't lick me dammit!" Hayate struggles. Luckily, Hiro stops Zero Two from basically assaulting the boy.

"Don't lick him Zero Two." He says, not letting her go until she relents.

"Who the hell are you weird people?" Hayate asks, confused beyond belief. The two were younger than him, definitely, but the differences in maturity were astounding. Hiro seemed to act older than he really was, acting as old, if not older, than Hayate does.

On the other hand, Zero Two acted more like a curious toddler. She displayed no sense of personal space or social norms, licking and sniffing people, and talking about their tastes and scents as if it was normal.

"I am Code 002 and this is my Darling, my stamen." The girl replies, staring at the bandaged Mirage on the other side of the room.

"I am Code 016, or as I like to call myself Hiro, and this is my pistil, Zero Two." The male clarifies, knowing that the answer she provided would make no sense.

Unfortunately, the answer didn't help much. Why do they go by Codes? What are Pistils? The hell is a Stamen?

Voicing these questions brought a confused look to Hiro's face. "You don't know what those are?" He asks, genuinely worried that Hayate had amnesia from the crash.

"I have never heard of those terms in my life." The teen confirms.

"A Pistil and Stamen are what we call the pilots of our FranXX units. The stamen controls the movement and weaponry while the Pistil works to keep the connection stable and distribute the magma energy evenly in a FranXX." Hiro recites from his teachings.

"FranXX?"

"Our mechs are called FranXX units. the one we picked you up in is called Strelizia." Hiro replies, before taking in Hayate's condition. "We should probably let you rest and recover more. If you need anything, just ask Hachi or Nana to call one of us. We can give you a tour of the facility once you are healed and questioned."

Hayate remains silent, his mind lost in thought, and remains that way as the two pilots leave the room.

He relaxes into the bed as he succombs to his exhaustion.


	3. Chapter 3

_StrikeGuest: Interesting chapter..._

_Now just a question: is there going to be dogfights between the klaxosaurs and Squad 13? That would be cool..._

_Also, can't wait for the sparring match that may come between the three Delta (well, technically two) and Strelizia._

**Short answer? Yes there will be. Long answer? There won't be many, as fight scenes are repetitive and quite tedious to make entertaining. I don't want to fully commit to an amount, but I know there will be at least one. Also, I can't wait to write the sparring match either. Though I won't be having Mirage participate.**

**Anyways, thank you StrikeGuest for your kind reviews! I always enjoy answering my reader's questions and appreciate the positive and negative feedback! **

"Name and age?" The redhead female asks Hayate without even looking at him. Hayate hesitates before realizing his last name meant nothing here. His father's actions wouldn't affect how people treated him here like it did within U.N. Spacyy.

"Hayate Immelman and I am seventeen years old." He replies firmly, looking for any signs of recognition at his last name. Upon seeing none, he releases a small breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

"Based on your uniform and vehicle, you are clearly part of a military force. Give me your rank, code, and main duty please."

_Code? Does she mean what my name is here? Did Hachi not tell her that I didn't know what a code was? _Hayate ponders before deciding on going with his gut.

"I am called Delta-5 of Delta Flight, main task is to protect and support Walküre Special Unit. I have no code."

The redhead finally looks up from her papers, intrigue written all over her face. "No code?"

"No code." He confirms, his gaze never leaving hers. The woman before him continue to search for signs of deceit in his eyes before deeming there was none. She goes back to writing on the clipboard in her hands.

"Training or combat history involving either FranXX units or the mecha you arrived in?"

Rubbing his sweaty palms on his pants, he starts to wonder if he should tell her. He wasn't exactly sworn to secrecy when he joined Delta Flight, but giving out information that could be used against him didn't exactly sound promising for him.

"I am not at liberty to disclose such sensitive information to Non-Chaos operatives." Hayate replies firmly, staring hard at the wall behind the redhead.

Nana's mouth twitches. "Loyal and courageous. You surprise me Pilot Immelman." Nana pauses for a second, "What _can_ you disclose about this Chaos organization?"

"Chaos works to protect the citizens of the galaxy from both external and internal enemies. Delta Flight in particular is responsible for aiding Walküre in fighting the VAR disease." Hayate informs her, his tone clearly stating that is all he will tell her.

Nana hums, both amused and intrigued by the young man before her. "Who and what are the other two girls?"

Hayate averts his eyes from her gaze, looking to the grey walls of the interrogation room. "I can only give you what you asked me already. The other pilot with me is Delta 4-Delta 2. Her name is Mirage and she is an eighteen year old Zentradi-human hybrid. She is my superior." Hayate pauses, a smile creeping across his face as he thinks of Freyja. "The other girl is Freyja Wion, a fifteen year old Windermerean. She is apart of the Walküre Tactical Sound Unit."

"So you like younger women?" Nana replies, her smirk clearly visible.

Hayate stutters, "w-what?! I'll have you know that Freyja is technically older than me!" His face was cherry red as he fumed at the females comment.

"How is fifteen older than seventeen exactly?" She asks. The teasing lilt in her tone made him freeze. Did she just embarrass him to get more information? Damn it.

"You're good at this." He comments her. The frown on his face deepening as her eyes twinkled with mischief.

"You are not as good at hiding your emotions as you believe you are, Hayate. Your eyes brighten whenever those two girls are mentioned and your cheeks darken whenever you talk about Freyja." She deadpans, her eyes boring into his. "In fact, I haven't interrogated someone in years. Now, about Freyja being older than you."

Hayate sighed in frustration, rubbing his face as he tries to think how he should word his response.

"Windermerean's have a life expectancy of thirty years in exchange for having extreme physical abilities. Freyja has lived for half her lifespan already. Since humans live to between seventy and eighty years old where I come from, that makes it so that humans live about two and a half times longer than Windermereans." Hayate explains, the math involved having been on his mind quite often during his free time. "So if you divide seventy-five by thirty, you get two and a half. Multiply Freyja's age by two and a half and you'll get her age in human years. Which means she is about thirty eight years old if she had a human's lifespan. That makes her twenty one years older than me by technicality."

Nana stares at Hayate in amusement. It was clear that the boy, whether he knew it or not, was grasping for straws. "Interesting…"

Standing up from the table, she signals the guards in. Two armed guards enter the room and remove the handcuffs from Hayate's hands. He stands up, rubbing the soreness out of his wrists, and returns his attention to the female's teal-green eyes. She holds out her hand and finally introduces herself.

"I am Code 007, also referred to as Nana. I am in charge of Parasite operations here. I look forward to seeing you in action Hayate Immelman."

"Wait. I have a few questions!" Hayate declares causing Nana to raise an eyebrow.

"And what makes you think I can or even should answer them?" Nana teases with a grin.

Surprisingly, Hayate smirks in return, "Because you clearly want more information about where I come from. You think you will get it from Freyja, but if there is one thing I know about that girl. She is a fighter. She practically shit talked the ruler of her own country right in front of both the elite guard, the council of elders, and the King's brother. That's the greatest act of high treason you can commit. She won't willingly answer you...meaning I'm the only one you will get answers from."

Nana grits her teeth in frustration. The brat had pulled one over her. _It was foolish of me to rely on whether the girl would answer my questions._

"Now that the board has been set and the pieces have been placed, how about we chat some more _Nana._" Hayate smiles at the irked redhead, resting his hands behind his head.

"You continue to surprise me Hayate. All right."

* * *

"Freyja Wion." The half metal man's voice grates on her ears, causing her to wince at the uncomfortable sound. He notices her discomfort and reaches behind his head. Turning the knob down, he addresses her once more. "Sorry about that, I forget the effect my voice has on newcomers."

"Who are you? What do you want?" Freyja asks, her tone impatient as her eyes darting all around his face. His metal mask was terrifying, but she'd seen plenty of scary things in her life.

He smirks at her rebellious attitude. Her gumption reminded him of the days before Papa came into power. She reminded him of his younger self: defiant, yet curious.

"My name is Doctor FranXX. I am the lead scientist for APE and am the creator of the FranXX units. I have come to inquire about the specifics involving your biological and chemical composition, your nationality, your species, and your blood."

"M-My blood? Why do you have my blood?!" Freyja stammers. This creepy old man took her blood without her knowing? What a pervert!

"Oh now that is just insulting." He declares, something akin to amusement in his tone, "I didn't take your blood you presumptuous child. Protocol requires a female nurse to draw any female patient's blood upon admittance to the infirmary. Imagine my surprise when I discover that you are already halfway through your life at the mere age of fifteen. Why is that?"

"My people are called Windermereans. We usually live to about thirty years of age due to our life force being connected to our runes." Freyja points to the little heart shaped rune on her head, which pulses once before dimming. "These runes are like any other expendable object: the more you use them, the shorter they last."

Doctor FranXX raised his eyebrows at the rune's seemingly independent actions. The rune acted as if it was its own organism, lazily drifting through the air, never standing still, and glowing at random times. "Why does it look like it can act on its own?" He inquires.

"W-what?! It's moving on its own?!" Freyja blushes and covers her rune with her hands. "D-Don't look at it like that you old creep! Our runes are affected by our emotions, therefore they can get out of hand if not controlled."

"Interesting. Your rune is treated like Code 002's horns. Could it be an erogenous point?" He mumbles, lost in thought. He shakes his head."Have you ever heard of magma energy?"

"Magma energy? I mean, I've heard of magma and energy, but I've never heard them combined…" Freyja replies, puzzled at the foreign term.

"Magma energy was discovered about a century ago by a man named Papa. At first it was a replacement for the non-renewable resources that were being consumed at an unhealthy rate. Coal had practically disappeared completely, oil became so scarce that it wasn't even worth drilling, and natural gas had become far too unstable to use. Cars became obsolete and pollution was at critical levels. Then magma energy was discovered. This magma energy came from Earth's inner core and by god was it revolutionary. It was perfect. It basically recycled most of itself upon consumption, it was hundreds of times more powerful than oil, and it had life-sustaining abilities."

Freyja's rune perks up at the life-sustaining part of the explanation. _Could it actually..._

"What type of abilities…?" Freyja asks eagerly, causing the doctor to smirk.

"Immortality, my dear child, it granted immortality. Injecting oneself with the serum severely slowed their aging process, making them practically immortal."

Freyja was stunned silent. Could it really be that easy? Could the dilemma of her lifespan really be fixed with just a simple injection? It sounded too good to be true, and in a way, she was right.

"What's the catch?" She retorts, frowning at the simplicity of his explanation. There was something about this man that irked her beyond belief. It was probably his ability to give such a detailed explanation but still successfully leave out crucial information.

"Ahh, you are quicker than I expected Ms. Wion." FranXX replies, grinning at the girls intuitiveness and deductive skills. "The catch, as you so bluntly put it, is that you would be forced to give up the pleasures of the flesh, much of your emotions, and be forced to watch hundreds of non-immortal beings pass away. It is truly an ugly curse."

"So basically I became a robotic weirdo in exchange for living eternally?" Her tone as dry as sandpaper.

"I will endeavor not to take offense at the comparison, but you are partially correct. Yes you will have to give up your reproductive functions, but the emotions are usually wiped away through continued use of the serum. The serum isn't a once and done thing, dear. The more you do it, the less human you become." He states, turning away from the young girl and leaving her to mull over his words. "Code 016 will come by soon to show you around the facility. Do be nice to the poor lad, he's not exactly the most social lad nowadays."

* * *

"Who and what the hell was that girl, Zero Two I think was her name, who licked me?" Hayate asks, still upset at the extremely weird actions of the girl.

"Ahh. That would be Code 002, also known as Zero Two. She is a klaxosaur human hybrid clone. You'll have to excuse her actions as she has no sense of human norms." Nana replies as she prepares for the inevitable second question.

"Klaxosaur?" He asks, tilting his head back and placing his feet on the table.

Nana smacks the feet aside, causing Hayate to smirk. "Over sixty million years ago, the Klaxo-Sapiens were a highly intelligent and technologically-centric race living peacefully on Earth. When the planet was invaded by VIRM, they were attacked relentlessly. In exchange for sparing the Klaxo Sapiens from enduring fear and the pain of death by surrendering their souls and allow VIRM to consume them, the VIRM offered them to merge with them as a single life form. The Klaxo Sapiens refused and a massive war broke out, which lasted for several hundreds of years and caused a large number of casualties on both sides."

"Although the VIRM were larger in size, they were outnumbered by the Klaxo Sapiens' use of technology and evolution; the long period of fighting drove the Klaxo Sapiens to gradually evolve, but at the cost of their reproductive organs. This led to the building of Klaxosaurs as defense arsenals, operating with a male and female pair. The female would merge with the klaxosaur while the male would become the core and maintain the control manuals. However, due to draining the planet's life energy while fighting VIRM, the Klaxo Sapiens unintentionally ignited the desertification of the planet. Ultimately, VIRM was forced to retreat and the Klaxo Sapiens, having lost their civilization and sense of self due to fusing with the Klaxosaurs, went underground."

"The powerful Klaxosaurs were to be used in preparation for any future threats whereas the weak Klaxosaurs were turned into energy and used to restore the planet. Thousands of years would pass until the humans discovered this energy, which they referred to as Magma Energy and thought of as part of the planet's core, and began drilling it to advance technology and their civilization. Initially, the Klaxosaurs didn't react to the drilling of magma energy until more of it was being drilled to turn humans into immortals. In the year 2037, the Klaxosaurs, whom scientists assumed were attracted to the magma energy as sources of fodder, began attacking the magma plants."

"This led to the creation of Plantations like the one we are currently in. They were initially built as safe havens for humanity due to the planet's increasing desertification but were turned into mobile anti-Klaxosaur fortresses and equipped with military arsenals a few years later. The remaining cities on the surface were quickly abandoned and mankind took full refuge in the plantations. We've been at war with the Klaxosaurs ever since."

Hayate sits in silence as he digests practically sixty millions years worth of history in the span of three minutes.

"What are parasites? You said you managed them."

"Parasites are children, like Hiro and Zero Two, who operate the FRANXX. The FranXX requires the pilots to retain their reproductive functions. Because all of the adults have lost those abilities in exchange for immortality, the children are created for the sole purpose of piloting the FRANXX and protecting the plantations, along with the adult population, from the klaxosaurs. The male parasite is called a Stamen and the female is called a Pistil." Nana replies, leaning back in her chair.

"So you use child soldiers?" Hayate exclaims in disbelief.

"It isn't the most moral decision humanity has made, but it is effective and pretty much our only option." She replies, her tone softening as her subconscious berates her. "We have no choice, Hayate."

"..." Hayate doesn't respond, continuing to stare at the metal table in front of him.

"I think that is enough questions for today. Hiro will come by soon to show you around the facility. Try to be civil with him. He's not exactly in the best of moods lately." With her part said and done, Nana stands up and allows Hayate to be led out of the interrogation room and back to the infirmary.


End file.
